Rams-Cowboys halftime notes: Offense rolling behind C.J. Anderson

There were no postseason jitters on the part of the Los Angeles Rams this time around – at least not in the first half. The offense came out hot behind none other than C.J. Anderson, who was absolutely dominant early on against the Dallas Cowboys.

Todd Gurley also got in on the mix with a touchdown of his own, ripping off a 35-yard carry in the second quarter. The Rams ran all over the Cowboys in the first half, racking up more than 170 yards rushing in the first 30 minutes.

The Rams went into the break with a 20-7 lead behind great efforts from the running backs, as well as the defense. Here are some notes from the first half.

The Rams have a good problem on their hands with both Anderson and Gurley running extremely well. The Cowboys have no answer for them right now and with a lead, the Rams can continue to run the ball and kill the clock.

Entering tonight's game, only 4 players had 70+ Rush yards in a game against the Cowboys this season.

Aaron Donald didn’t have his name called once. Despite having a favorable matchup against Connor Williams, he was shut out by Dallas. He didn’t have a single sack or tackle and wasn’t even on the halftime box score. The Cowboys did a great job blocking him with double teams.

Sean McVay’s burned timeout with 1:16 left in the first quarter came back to hurt the Rams at the end of the first half. They were forced to spike it to stop the clock, leading to a 63-yard field goal attempt.

Aside from one bad coverage assignment from Lamarcus Joyner on Amari Cooper, the defense was great. Joyner was burned for a touchdown, the Cowboys’ lone score of the game.

Jared Goff had some trouble despite not being pressured, throwing it away on third down in the red zone with a free blitzer coming up the middle. Gurley was wide open but he missed him. He completed 11 of 21 passes for 121 yards.

The offensive line has been outstanding, allowing just one hit on Goff, which came on Jaylon Smith’s blitz in the red zone. Otherwise, the running lanes were huge and the protection was excellent. Goff was barely touched.

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